1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for reproducing images and, more particularly, to an apparatus and a method for reproducing image data by using representative images of moving image data or still image data.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional digital video camera for recording and/or reproducing image data in and/or from a magneto-optical disk, a hard disk, or a recording medium, such as a memory card, permitting random access has a display unit, such as an electronic view finder (hereinafter referred to as “EVF”) or a liquid crystal panel, and an output terminal for supplying data to an apparatus, including a television apparatus (television monitor) and a personal computer (PC).
This type of video camera displays an object, such as a moving image, on its display unit in a videotaping mode, while it displays a reproduced image in a reproduction mode. The video camera also displays information required for making various settings or selection.
An IEEE1394 terminal or a USB terminal used for the output terminal permits connection between the digital video camera and a television monitor, a PC or various other types of equipment, including a digital television apparatus and a video cassette recorder.
FIG. 12 illustrates an example of a control screen 1500 shown on a display unit to allow the selection of a moving image clip to be reproduced from among a plurality of moving image clips when reproducing obtained image data in this type of digital video camera.
The control screen 1500 is displayed not only on the display unit of the digital video camera, but also on another apparatus having a display function, for example, when the apparatus is connected to the output terminal.
Referring to FIG. 12, the control screen 1500 has display regions 1503 through 1508 for displaying a representative image of each moving image clip, a cursor 1509, a slider 1510, a pointer 1511 and a video clip information display region 1502.
A representative image displayed in any of the representative image display regions 1503 through 1508 is a single-frame image among a number of frames constituting a moving image clip, the image having been reduced to a predetermined size (hereinafter referred to also as a “thumbnail image”). The data on such representative images is usually stored in a header section in a file of moving image clips, or generated using image data for one screen among moving image data, as necessary.
A user moves the cursor 1509 by operating keys so as to select a desired moving image clip from among the representative images displayed in the representative image display regions 1503 through 1508.
FIG. 12 shows an example in which the moving image clip corresponding to the representative image shown in the representative image display region 1505 has been selected. The slider 1510 and the pointer 1511 provide information roughly indicating which images among all moving image clips recorded in a recording medium correspond to the representative images (a group of thumbnails) currently shown on the representative image display regions 1503 through 1508.
The video clip information display region 1502 displays the information, namely, video clip information, regarding the moving image clip pointed at by the cursor 309. FIG. 12 exemplarily shows the video clip information “15/30” and “ABCD0015” in the video clip information display region 1502. The information “15/30” indicates that a total of 30 moving image clips have been recorded in the recording medium, and when they are sorted out in a predetermined order, the moving image clip selected by the cursor 1509, that is, the moving image clip associated with the representative image displayed in the representative image display region 1505, is the 15th clip.
For instance, if a user performs a reproduction operation in this state, then the procedure for reproducing the moving image clip selected by the cursor 1509 is started. Upon completion of the reproduction procedure, the control screen 1500 is displayed again.
Alternatively, the moving image clips are reproduced in succession unless the user interrupts the reproducing operation, and upon the completion of the reproduction of the last moving image clip, the program returns to the control screen 1500.
The control screen 1500 may display various types of information, including the remaining amount of the battery of the digital video camera and the presence of a recording medium. The cursor 1509 may be indicated in a frame-like configuration surrounding a representative image rather than the black triangle, as shown in FIG. 12.
A user interface like the control screen 1500 shown in FIG. 12 has a configuration similar to the user interface in the so-called digital camera adapted mainly to shoot and reproduce still images.
The user interface of a digital video camera handling moving images and the user interface of a digital camera handling still images are different only in whether an image to be selected is a still image or a one-frame image in the frames making up a moving image.
Thus, a video tape, for example, is an extensively used medium for recording moving images, and a video cassette recorder or a video camera represents a typical recording and/or reproducing apparatus using the video tape.
The video tape, which by nature permits no random access, has to be rewound or fast-forward fed to reproduce a moving image recorded before or after the current position, requiring time for such an operation.
The main unit of the recording and/or reproducing apparatus using a video tape is provided with a display for showing, for example, a bar indicating the current reproduction position, a remaining amount and a counter, thus allowing the user to recognize the current reproduction position on the video tape.
However, the conventional digital video camera using the recording medium that permits random access as mentioned above has been posing a problem with its construction for the display and control in selecting moving image clips to be reproduced, as described below.
For example, in the control screen 1500 shown in FIG. 12, when selecting a moving image clip to be reproduced by using a representative image, in case of a still image clip, there should be no problem because the representative image matches a still image to be reproduced with one-to-one correspondence.
In the case of a moving image clip, however, the method illustrated in FIG. 12 permits only one mode to be selected, in which the reproducing operation always starts with the beginning of a moving image clip, so that the reproduction cannot be started in the middle of a moving image clip.
Furthermore, a user who is familiar with equipment using a video tape rather than equipment that uses a recording medium permitting random access may feel uncomfortable with the operation of the equipment using the randomly accessible recording medium or may lose firm sense of time.